Door operating mechanism



April 1950 L, R RISSLER ET AL 2,502,995

DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 26 1948 SSH , INVENTOR s L enn/us E Ema/er and WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY April 4, 1950 R. RISSLER ETAL 2,502,995

' DOOR-OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 26, 1948 I s Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS wlTNEs SEs' A en/u'u. E E/bvkr and 624 W .e/chard M 5,0:0/1

2a I ZZ ATTORNEY April 1950 I O L. R. RISSLER ET AL 2,502,995

DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM I Filed June 26, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 WITNESSES: O INYENTORS 6%? r Lena/u: E. Ema/erand ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 4, :1950

TED STATES T "2,502,995

'r DOORzOBERATING =MEGH-ANISM 'hennius YR. iRissler, Hoho'kus, and Richard M.

Spear, *J ersey Gity; N. J .,*-as'signors to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa e-a. .corporationzof Pennsylvania -Application"June 26, 1948,1Seiriali No..- 353394 Claims.

'F'Ihisinventionrelatestodooroperatingmecha- -nisms and it"has particular 'relationto "anelevator-system wherein a master door .operator; is employed for operating "hoistway doors.

"In elevator-- systems "it' is conventional practice to 'employ 'a "master. door :operator mounted on an elevator car for operating "hoistway doors.

Whemthe car is" locatedat a landing the -master "door'operator is coupled releasably to an associated hoistway door fort-he purpose of opening and closing thehoistway .door. It is desirable that the :7 mechanism employed Lffor coupling 1 the masterdooroperator to a 'hoistway doorbe. substantially noiseless and 1 that it "have little "lost motion.

In accordance with the invention, male and female members are :employed :for coupling .a master door "operatorto. a "hoistway door. 'L'Ihe female membermay take theform of a slotted member secured to each "of the'hoistwaydo'ors. An expansible' vane is associated.withthemaster fdoor' operator: and istreceivable: in the slot ofthe slotte'dimem'ber. During "the initialportion'of a "door opening operation the expans'ible :vane "is expanded to ,fill substantially the slotin ithe slotted member. When'the"hoistway door is-"reclosed'the vane-is contracted in'gorderto faciliirate-release of the vane" from. the slotted member.

It-is,' therefore, anobjectzoftheinvention to provide an" improved-door operating mechanism.

It Be further'object:ofthe"inventionitofprovide an elevator system whereina master door operator has an 'expansible vane positioned "for releasable "reception "in "agslotte'd member carried by each' of a plurality' of hoistway "doors.

It is alsoan object of the inventionto provide a-systemessetforth in the preceding paragraph wherein the vane.;is expandedduring the: initial portion or a door opening operation; to fillzsubstan'tially the'slot in the. slotted member.

I'It' is a still "further "object of the l invention to provide'a system "as defined in the preceding paragraph wherein" the vane' is contracted during that final portion ;of a 'dOOr closing operation.

T'Other objects of; the 'invention'will be. apparent from the; following description taken inJconjunction with .the accompanying drawingsQin which:

Fig, 1 is ..a viewinelevation, with partsinsection and parts. schematically shown,. of an elevator system which. may. incorporate the. invention.

Fig. ".2. is a viewfin f front elevation with. parts broken away and parts sohematically shown. .of an elevator car embodyin theinvention.

' Rig." 3.' is.-a view. in top plan with. partsbroken .the elevator .car of Fig. 2 and ..a portion of'the associated elevatorthoistway. enclosure.

Fig. 4'is'aviewinyside -elevation with parts "broken away andpartsin section of the elevator "car illustrated" in Fig.2 androfa portion ofth'e "hoistway enclosure for "the elevator car.

(Rig: 5 "is'a view'infifrontelevation' with parts broken-away 'of an -expamsible "vane and an operating cam'itherefor-suitablefor the elevator ".car 'ofilFigs. "3 -and 4.

Fig. .6 is a 'view .in .side elevation of the expansible vane and cam :of "Fig; 5 and .Fig. '7 is a view in top plan "of the. expansible vane of "FigJS in association with a portion .of "a slotted" member.

Referring "to "the "drawings, Fig. '1 .shows an elevator j system which'includes a hoistway enclosure I for an elevator card. This elevator .car may .serveany desirednumber'of'fioors or ila'ndin'gs but "to simplify the illustration only fioorsfl Zan'd .2 of a building are shown associated lwith the hoistway. "The elevator car is'connected 'to a counterweight *5' by -means offlexible roping .or cable 1 which passes over a sheave 9. This sheave; is rotated" by suitable 'control mechanism |!'for"the,;purposefof reciprocating the elevator car in its hoistwayIandstoppingi'the elevator. car at any'desired'landing. "A 'car. switch l3 'positione'd the 'car 'andsuitable push buttons '15 may be, 'provi'de'dTor eachifloor in a conventional manner for initiating '.movement of the .elevator car.to anytdesired floor. Sincesuitablecontrol mechanisms for 'elevator 'cars are understood in the art, a; furtherdiscussion thereof is unnecessary'foran understanding of the, invention.

jAteach'floor the' ihoistwayenclosure is provide'd with .a'.hoistway,fdoorll'l. .Inaddition the elevator 'carf hasa door l9. which,..when the elevator carhisgstoppe'd atlaifioor;is.aligned with the associated hoistway .door. lThevarious .doors -may be,df-..any.deSired-, conventional. construction such as centereopening .or..,'side-opening doors, ordouble orls'ingleidoors. '.-In.or'der to simplify thediscussi-on, i Will be .assumed that .the. doors are single ..;doors .mounted Lfor {horizontal sliding movement.

Although .the .elevator .car door .19 could be operated manually, door .operators mounted on the elevator .carOften. areemployed for .opening and closing the .car...door. "Such an .operator ,is illustratedJinFigs. 12,,3. and 4,..an'd now will be described.

InfF,ig. ;2;,the elevator .car .door 19,..is shown in its .lclose'd ;;p0jsition. ITTo .faciliteite reciprocation away and parts'in section showing a portion of of'the elevator door'in a'horizontal direction the elevator car door is provided with door hangers 2| each of which includes a roller 23. The rollers are mounted for movement in a horizontal direction along a rail 25 which is secured to the elevator car.

The door operator for the elevator car door includes an electric motor 21 which rotates a crank arm 29 through suitable reduction gearing 3i between two limiting stops 32 and 33. The motor 21 is of the reversible direct-current type and may be controlled for energization from conductors L by any conventional door-control circuit (not shown) for the purpose of effecting an opening or closing operation of the door. When the door is to be opened the motor is operated to rotate the crank arm 29 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2 into engagement with the stop 33. In order to reclose the door the electric motor is reversed and returns the crank arm 29 to the position illustrated in Fig. 2.

Rotation of the crank arm 29 is transmitted to a lever 31 which is pivotally secured to the elevator car by means of a shaft 39 which has a threaded end for receiving a nut 4!. A link 43 has one end pivotally secured to the crank arm 29 and its remaining end pivotally secured to one end of the lever 3'1. A link 45 pivotally secured to the lower end of the lever 31 connects the lever to a bracket '41 which is secured to the elevator car door [9. By inspection of Fig. 2 it will be observed that the link 45 is pivotally connected to the bracket 41.

As the crank arm 29 moves in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2 the car door l9 moves to the left towards its open position. The positions of the door 59, the lever 3'! and the link 45 when the door is partly open are illustrated .in broken lines in Fig. 2.

The door operator employed for opening and closing the elevator car door also is employed for opening and closing each of the hoistway doors served by the elevator car. To this end cooperating male and female members are provided on the elevator car door and on each of the associated hoistway doors. male member in the form of a vane 49 is secured to the bracket 41 in any suitable manner as by means of bolts Each of the hoistway doors I! is provided with a slotted member 53 for reception of the vane 49 (see Figs. 3 and 4).

It will be understood that if the elevator car is not to stop at a floor the vane 49 should be free to pass the slotted member 53 associated with the hoistway door of the last mentioned floor. If desired the slotted member 53 may be constructed of a rigid material such as metal hinged for movement about a horizontal axis and biased into the position illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. Preferably, however, the slotted mem ber 53 is constructed of a flexible resilient material such as fabric impregnated with a resilient plastic. For example the slotted member may be constructed of layers of cotton fabric which are impregnated with an elastomer such as natural or synthetic rubber. The rubber may be vulcanized and the construction may be similar to that commonly employed for the production of fabric or cord reenforced belting and automobile tire casings. If the slotted member has a large horizontal dimension H (Fig. 3) it will be substantially rigid in a horizontal direction. Furthermore, if the slotted member has a small vertical dimension V (Fig. 4) it will flex readily in a vertical direction. Consequently, if the vane Preferably the should strike a projecting part of the slotted member during travel of the elevator car the slotted member would merely flex to permit passage of the vane without damage. As clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the slotted member is secured at one edge to a base 55 in any suitable manner which in turn is secured to the hoistway door l1.

Each hoistway door 11 is mounted for reciprocation in a direction parallel to that of the elevator car door. To this end each hoistway door may be provided with door hangers 51 (Fig. 4) and rollers 59 for guiding the hoistway door along a rail 6| which is secured to the hoistway enclosure. The door hangers 5'l, rollers 59 and rail 6| are essentially similar to the corresponding parts associated with the elevator car door l9.

The vane 49 includes a fixed element or blade 63 which is rigidly secured to the bracket 47. This rigid or fixed element 63 alone would suffice to enter the slot of a slotted member 53 for the purpose of moving the associated hoistway door I! with the elevator car door. However, the clearance necessary to permit passage of the fixed element 63 through the slot of the slotted member would result in substantial lost motion therebetween. The lost motion in turn would produce noise and excessive wear of the parts. For this reason the vane 49 preferably is of expansible construction.

The construction of the vane 49 is shown clearly in Figs. 5, 6, and 7. It will be observed that the fixed element 63 has associated therewith a rotatable element or blade 65 which is mounted for rotation about an axis parallel to the direction of movement of the associated-elevator car. The fixed element 63 has bearings 61 and 69 secured to its ends for reception of shafts II and 13 which project from the two ends of the rotatable element 65. The shaft 13 has a shoulder 15 which engages the upper surface of the bearing 69 and is secured for rotation in the bearing 69 by means of a nut H which engages a threaded end of the shaft.

The shaft H projects through the bearing 6'! for a substantial distance and has a coil or helical spring 1'9 positioned around the exposed end. One end of the spring is secured to the shaft by means of a machine screw 8|. The remaining end of the helical spring 70 projects radially from the shaft "H and engages a pin 83 which is secured to the bearing 61. The spring 19 biases the rotatable element 65 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. '7, towards the fixed element 63.

The elements 63 and 55 are essentially plates or blades which have their edges positioned for reception in the slot of the slotted member 53. It will be observed from Fig. 7 that if the rotatable element or blade 65 is in released position the resultant vane 49 is loosely received within the slot of the slotted member 53. However, provision is made for turning the rotatable element or blade 65 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. '7 against the spring bias to the position shown in broken lines in Fig. 7 to fill substantially the slot in the slotted member. Under such conditions the two elements or blades 63 and B5 engage the opposite faces 53A and 53B of the slot to eliminate substantially any lost motion between the vane 49 and the slotted member 53.

The mechanism for rotating the rotatable element or blade 65 includes a cam 85 (Figs. 5 and fixed zelementpr blade'#63 ltolengage the rotatable element or blade in ran -sarea 5 which istdisplaced to tthe left of the axis 20f rotation of s'the .b1ade as viewed-i-n-Fig.-i6.

--'Ih'e mam -:.85 may be constructed I from any suitable material: such=as.steel. lPreferablm-however, the surfacewf the eam which engages the rotatable .element MOI tblade ris constructed of a plastic materialwhich:isui mpregnated twithta =lubricant. This .tplastic material may shave substantialiresilience for example, the tip iofihtheicam 85smay.betconstructed -of layers gofl'co'ttonkfabric impregnated with;an elastomersuchras natural :or synthetic-rubber. If rubber employedlitaimay be vuleanizeti. lThe :aelastomers eshould 'have a hardnessasiiificientito maintain thetrotatableiand fixed eleinents firmlyagainstithe sides offthe slot of aislotted xmember:duringitheconditions' oroperation:=encountered inxthe openingt and rclosing of .thefdbors.

rThe cam 85 operates .to xexpand the =vane 'during' ithe'xinitial lpart .of ra idoor :opening-roperation and-permits:contraction ofi the"vaneiduring'aifinal partvof i'a ldoorlclosing operation. The operation of-atl'ie cam w ill-ubennderstoodmest:clearly from a- :considerationi of Fig- 2. It will be noted that the-link 45 hasiamen 'extendingto-the right of the;pointvat 'which it is pivoted' to the bracket "Ito {1 form the fcam 85. lhe cam 85 together with-the link-=45-'mayibe constructed from-a Single stripaof steel, however; as 'previouslypointed out thetface of .theicame 85 which engages the rotatable element ori blade rpreferably is constructed of a' lubricanteimpregnated plastic"which may be secured to: the link45 any suitable manner.

As the door tll starts -to open the link 45 rotates,iin eaxcounterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2 to the position illustrated in broken lines. The cam surfaceis-"soshaped that during this initial rotation f the link '451tl1e cam -85 expands the vane 49 fully within the slot of an associated-slotted"member. The :cam is configured to maintain the vane expanded during the remainder of the door opening operation.

During the door closing" operation the" Vane49 remains-expanded 'until the door reaches the position illustrated in broken lines in Fig. 2. During the final portion of the door closing operation the link 45 returns to the position illustrated in full lines in Fig. 2 to permit contraction of the vane 49.

It is believed that the operation of the invention now may be set forth. During reciprocation of the elevator car in its hoistway the elements 63 and 65 of the vane 49 occupy the positions illustrated in Figs. 3 and '7. Under such conditions substantial clearance is provided between the vane 49 and the slotted member 53 of each hoistway door to permit free passage of the vane through each of the slotted members. When the elevator car is stopped at a floor for the purpose of discharging or receiving passengers the motor 21 is energized to initiate a door opening operation. During the initial part of the door opening operation the fixed element or blade 63 engages the face 53A of the slotted member 53 (Fig. 3) to start the opening movement of the door IT. The rotatable element or blade 65 is relatively free during this initial stage.

As the doors start to open the link 45 moves from the position illustrated in full lines (Fig. 2) to the position illustrated in broken lines. As a result of such rotation of the link 45 the cam 85 rotates the element or blade 65 firmly into engagementrwithi thetaceiMBvfiEigaS) 20ft the. slotted member 53. Duringthis period the doorL-t'lzzis being=acceleratedaandthezllnertiaizofi-the ldoor l1 maintains the element .?or 'iblade :63 mm engagement .iwith the sr-face 53A out (the rslot. womequentlypthe:expansioneftheevane laidoesinbtfresuit inlanysiarning ofa-theridoorszand:fdoeshnot producetany substantial-moisesor wear. 1

i'I he:expansiblewaneflQmemainssexpandednrhtil thezdoomismll'yopen. 'iA fter .theipassen'gersihave been :received' orznischargedr theimiotorfli'l' is reversed .:to':rinitiataladoor 'cloeing ope afilm. T-he vane Aairema ins expanded duiiing the* door closi-ng eperationuuntil the door' passes thepo'si'tion i-llinstratedt-in':brokenhlines in Eig. 'l. f@Jontinud movementzofithe doorsre'sultssin a releaseiof the rotatablezelement o1i' blade G5 by 'Tthescam fi and 'thei bla de u-nder -theiii-nfiuenc'e of ts bias r0 tates to contract 'the vane 'fl. fburingtthisstage of -operation "the doors *a-re lbeing clecelerated. such 'decele-rations'fduring the "final yportlons'of the opening and closing movemen-ts- Pof the 1' elevator-car and hoistway* doors are conventionally provided i-n' the art. Fonexampla-the'crank arm 29- of Figi 2 as it'-'approaches'teilignmentwwithithe link-i it-moves the lever 3'l at "decreasing'rates to effectdeceleration of thedoors. sinceprovi'sions for decelerating the doors as they approach limit-' ing='positions"- are wellk-nown in the aitffutther dis cussion-"thereo'f -is"b'elieved"to'"be unnecessary;

from the {position illustrated "by broken lines (Fig. 2) to"theftilly closezr'position illustrated in iiill linesfit is cleartha't thefac 53A "(Fig.i3) or the slottedmemberismaintained in engagement with the" fixed"elementxorbladelfl. "Consequently the"rotatable elementor blade 65 .is"'freeto' rotate td'its .retra cte wpo'sition 'tv'itho'ilt" Substantial noise-orwear.

"Inasmuch: as the'vane J49 'issecuredpreierably directly to the bracketii'l, thei'f'orces requirdsto open "and close" thehbistway door i 11 are met transmittedto" any excessive extent through'ithe candoor l 9.

Alth'ough theinvefitionlisi'described.with reference "to "-C'ertain specific embodiments lTthereof,

numerous modificationsialling." withinifthe; spirit and" scope' of'the" invention are possible.

We claim as our invention:

1. In an elevator system, an elevator hoistway enclosure having a hoistway door therein, an elevator car disposed for movement in the hoistway enclosure from a position displaced from the door to a predetermined position adjacent the door, door-operating mechanism disposed on the car, a slotted member, an expansible vane member disposed for reception loosely in the slot of the slotted member when the elevator car is in the predetermined position, one of the members being secured to the door for movement therewith and the other of said members being operable by the door operating mechanism, and expansion mechanism responsive to operation of the door-operating mechanism for expanding the vane member substantially to the limits permitted by the slot in the slotted member.

2. An elevator system as defined in claim 1 wherein the vane member is carried by the elevator car and the slotted member is secured to the door.

3. An elevator system as defined in claim 1 wherein the vane member comprises a pair of relatively movable elements, a biaser for biasing the elements towards each other, said expansion mechanism operating in opposition to the biaser as an opening operation of the door is initiated.

4. An elevator system as defined in claim 1 wherein the elevator car has a car door, said vane member comprising a-fixed element fixed relative to the car door and disposed for reception in the slot of the slotted member when the elevator car is in the predetermined position, and a rotatable element disposed in the slot of the slotted member when the elevator car is in the predetermined position, said rotatable element being mounted for rotation about an axis parallel to the direction of car movement, said expansion mechanism being coupled to the ratatable element for rotating the rotatable element about the axis during the initial part of a door-opening cycle of the door-operating mechanism in order to take up play between the vane member and the slotted member.

5. An elevator system as defined in claim 4 wherein the fixed element is located nearer than the rotatable element to the open position of the car door when the car door is in closed position.

6. An elevator system as defined in claim 4 wherein the door-operating mechanism includes a rotatable cam having a sound-insulating portion for engaging and rotating the rotatable element.

7. A door-operating system comprising a supporting structure, a door slidable relative to the supporting structure between a closed position and an open position, a slotted member secured to the door for movement therewith, an expansible vane loosely disposed in the slot of the slotted member when the door is in closed position, door-operating mechanism including a lever movable from a first position to a second position for actuating the vane to open the door, and expansion mechanism responsive to the initial part of the movement of the lever from the first position for expanding the vane to fill the slot.

8. A door-operating system as defined in claim '7, wherein the vane comprises a pair of relatively rotatable elements rotatable from positions wherein the vane is loosely disposed in the slot of the slotted member to positions wherein the vane firmly engages opposed sides of the slot, and wherein the expansion mechanism comprises a cam actuated by the lever for rotating the elements relative to each other during the initial portion of a door-opening operation of the lever to firmly engage opposed sides of the slot in the slotted member, whereby continued operation of the lever opens the door with substantially no lost-motion between the lever and the door.

9. A door-operating system as defined in claim 8 in combination with guide mechanism for guiding the vane independently for movement in the direction of movement of the door, said cam comprising a link pivoted at spaced points respectively to the lever and to the vane, said link having a cam surface engaging one of the elements for producing relative rotation of the elements to force the elements against opposed sides of the slot in the slotted member during the initial door-opening movement of the lever.

10. A door-operating system comprising a door, guide means mounting the door for reciprocation between open and closed positions, a slotted member secured to the door, a vane loosely disposed in the slot of the slotted member when the door is in closed position, guide means mounting the vane for reciprocation independently of the door in a path parallel to that of the door reciprocation, said vane comprising a fixed vane element movable along its path of reciprocation with a predetermined fixed orientation, a rotatable vane element rotatable relative to the fixed vane about an axis transverse to the directions of said reciprocations for substantially filling the slot in the slotted member, said fixed vane element being disposed between the rotatable vane element and the open position of the door when the door is in closed position.

LENNIUS R. RISSLER. RICHARD M. SPEAR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,950,150 Norton et al. Mar. 6, 1934 2,432,293 Giovanni Dec. 9, 1947 

